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C4C Network Crawler (beta)

A small tool for exploring big patterns.

The C4C Network Lab is an experimental space where we prototype simple ways to see how relationships form, spread, and influence real-world decision-making. Many of the systems we work in -- water stewardship, climate adaptation, philanthropy, public policy -- depend on how people and organizations connect. But those connections are usually hidden.

This tool gives us a lightweight way to surface the early shape of a network using publicly available LinkedIn data and the EnrichLayer API.

What this prototype does

You provide a short list of up to five LinkedIn profiles -- individuals or organizations you believe sit at the center of an issue, community, or collaboration. The tool then:

Fetches basic public information about each profile
Identifies the first--and optionally second--layer of "people also viewed" connections
Organizes those relationships into a set of network-ready files
Outputs two clean CSVs:

nodes.csv (the profiles)
edges.csv (the connections)

These files can be loaded into Polinode (or really any network analysis platform).

The result isn't meant to be a full map of influence -- rather, it's a fast, directional sketch of the people and perspectives surrounding a topic. It helps answer early questions like:

Who clusters around this issue?
Where does expertise sit?
Who are the unexpected links or missing actors?
Where might outreach or storytelling create the most momentum?

Why I built this

Most organizations don't need heavy analytic infrastructure to begin understanding their network -- they need clarity, context, and momentum.

This prototype lets us:

Test hypotheses about influence or collaboration
Illustrate why network visibility matters
Support early-phase ecosystem design
Build teasers and examples quickly for partners
Save hours of manual searching and data wrangling

It automates the parts that should be automatic, and leaves judgement, interpretation, and strategy to the humans.

What this is NOT

To keep expectations aligned:

It is not a full network map
It is not a scraping tool
It is not a representation of private data
It does not analyze sentiment, discourse, or influence
It does not replace deeper research

This is a prototype -- a small engine that helps us explore possibilities and refine the larger vision for C4C's network insight tools.